The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1887-11-04
a NOTED CRIMINAL

A NOTED CRIMINAL.
Strange Carsse u Maa who Dssd In San
Last spring-Ths Rspatsd Sos 81 Klng
Blgnmlst aaA Swlndler.
BosroN, Oct. ga mystery Of strange
hfe has been solved, and . wonderfully 70.
mantle story Of criminal adventure has
been brought out by the identification Of
the late DIR. Andrew jackson Grant, big.
amist and confdeuce man, a. the famous
Fenian leader, DR.. Louis Contri, who was
| IN illegitimate son Of Victor Emanuel, King
of Italy. The last words of the remarkable
man, rs he lay in Cambridge Jail last April,
were: 1.-THE world shall never know me
| Is was" Nevertheless his secret has
been probed and the career which was cx-
posed will lind none TO match it, Tho
doctors disguise was pierced several
weeks before his death by one or two per-
sons who knew him years before as DR..
Contri, bit they did not expose him. He
/! was then awaiting trial for bigamy and
swindling Miss Lucy Torrey, Of Cambridge,
! out Of go, Co., and if he had lived to 20 into
court the whole story would probably have
come out, for many persons hereabouts
| knew the Fenian leader intimately previous
to 1872. These persons have fully identi.
/ fed DR.. Grants photograph since his death
| as that of DR.. Contri.
| According to his story, he was born in
: Austria, but was the son Of Victor Eman-
uel and Archduchess Adelhird, Of Austria.
+. He was born in ls4a, two months before
| Victor Emanuel and the archduchess were
| united in marriage. Victor Emanuel was
| at that time King Of Sardinia, and did not
| succeed to the throne OF Italy till 1861.
| When but mere child he was transferred
| to the custody Of an old abbot in Switzer-
land, by whom he was carefully schOO!ed
in the sciences. Among other things he
made speciality OF languages, and 30 pro-
fcient had he become that he could
| speak 1t least five with fiuency. The old
| abbot became, as it we're APPARENT &c him,
and finally the young mans desires to
know something Of his parentage became
| 50 strong that the good old priest told him
all, even to the stain upon his birth. When
the young man grew up he went to Sar-
DINA ard openly conspired against the
King. and was forced to fly. His alleged
| father supplied him with money. He came
to America with DIR. McSheehy, and when
| the war broke out he enlisted in New
| York regiment.
His connection with the Fenian raid on
| Canada is well known. It was his ventures
in the marriage line that gave him his
| widest reputation. When he came to this
| country he left q wife in Germany, but
| soon after landing here he took another.
| Little is known OF his army life, except the
| fact that he was taken prisoner and sent to
| Richmond some months before the fall Of
| the Southern capital. He then made the
| acquaintance Of Miss Virginia Saunders, a
| niece Of jefferson Davis. He was an Aaron
Burr among women, and easily won the
heart of Miss Saunders. Hardly had peace
! been declared before Contr married her
! and few with her to Canada. They lived
IN Montreal few months only when his
| young bride died, leaving him once more
free man, for his little German wife had
| obtained a divorce on account Of his deser-
! ton. He returned at once to the States and
arrived in Boston in the spring OF 1866, when
Fenianism was at its height. He went into
| the fight body and soul, and was among
the first to enroll himself in the rank and
| file then preparing for q raid on Canada.
| So energetic was he that when the Fenians
| left Boston he was Colonel. In 1860 he
married Mrs. Jane Delaney, OF Boston, who
had $1D,OO0 in bank. When that was gone
he deserted her. He next married Miss
Mary Dittson, of Hudson river town.
| For this he was sentenced to Sing Sing for
| two years. but secured his release after
three months. He then dropped the name
| of Contri.
In 1889 he appeared in London under the
name of DIR. Grant, and advertised as a
specialist, and lectured extensively in mind
curing. Being again involved in scandal,
he secretly left London and returned to the
United States. He learned that his first
wife had procured a divorce from him and
had gone to live in Chicago. He went there
and it IS believed that while in that city he
obtained medical degrees from local dis
pensary under the name of A. ]. Perry, by
which name he became widely known. He
figured conspicuously in the lecture rooms
of the West and South as man Of learn
ing and uncommon elOquence. Newspaper
notices OF his lectures were found in scrap
book in his trunk after his arrest in Clay
ton, N. j.. in March last.
1t was while out upon lecture tour that
be first met and married the woman who is
known as Kate Ray, his sister. Together
they conspired to do up'' the large water
ing places of the country. In the summer
Of 1854 he and his sister were at Old Orchard
Beach under the name OF DR.. Percy. He
claimed to be an extremely wealthy Eng
lshman with untold possessions in Aus
tralia. The woman he passed oil as his
sister he said also possessed great wealth.
Among the visitors to the beach was Miss
Emma Kanes, Of st. Thomas, Canada,
whom he married in short order. He Sc
cured nearly 5000 from her and then left
her. He proposed to number of oher
women and became engaged to Mrs. Will
liams, rich widow, of Kennebunk, Me.
Tho timely interference Of friends saved
her. AT REVERE Beach he laid siege to the
heart of q MISS Riddle, Of Manchester, N.
H. proposed and was rejected. He visited,
with his alleged sister, Newport, Nam
tucket, Long Branch, Bar Harbor, Sara
tOga, Lake Winnipiseogee and resorts in
the White mountains. In 1885 he opened a
Doctors Office in Boston. He was soon en-
gagged to marry three ladies, and after rob-
bling them of all they had he decamped.
In March, 1885, he paid court to Mrs.
Annie Bulger, q dress maker Of Brooklyn,
and finally proposed to marry her. At the
same time he was carrying on similar ar.
rangement with Mary Sturgis Of New
York City. He fed on the night he agreed
to marry both. taking all they possessed,
even their clothes. He next turned up at
Littleton, N. H., where he married Miss
Lucy Torrey, OF Cambridge. This netted |
him S,0,OO0, After that affair DIR. Grant |
went into hiding in Clayton, N. j., where !
some time previously he had purchased a
comfortable little farm. After he had |
robbed the Cambridge lady DR.. Grant and |
his sO-called sister quarreled over the |
spOils. The doctor went to his home and |
Kate went West. Detective Ducey, Of |
Cambridge got on his track, and after |
some skillful work, arrested him IN Clay |
tor. N. j.. early IN March. He was taken |
back to Cambridge. and committed to the !
house of correction to await his trial. On |
the 18th Of April he died.